TV放送決定に後押しされて超長編 The Pillars of the Earth に挑む！その前に無料絵本Jed & Roy McCoy, A Christmas Story で英語脳ストレッチ・・・のはずが、慣れない言い回しに脳がちぢんだ　 ( )

The old McCoy feud. Two brothers have a ridiculous feud. One night each year they have a peaceful dinner (with red and green decor, really?) Then an angel makes an announcement. They visit the baby (who "brings peace on earth") and the feud is suddenly over? While this is a new way to introduce the Christmas story and birth of Jesus, it's almost like it is cut short. I wish the author had taken this a step further and had the brothers apologize or at least explain why the brothers changed their minds about their feud. Just because Jesus came into the world He didn't miraculously fix feuds. This book could have also been used by the author to subtley explain why family is important and brothers (and sisters) should try to get along. ( )

NCLA Review - The Cecil and Friends picture books use quirky humor and cartoon-like drawings to retell Bible stories for kids. In some of the books the Bible story is told just as it is in the Bible, but other books in the series, such as Jed and Roy McCoy, tell an original story based on a Bible text. Kid humor and anachronistic illustrations make these books fun. In Cecil the Lost Sheep, Cecil dreams of getting a motorcycle or joining a band. In Jonah’s Story God delivers his messages to Jonah via humorous letters. Jonah has a mailbox and a white picket fence. In Zac the Tax Man, Zacchaeus is a modern kid (we see his school photo in one illustration) who makes money by doing kids’ homework for them. At the end of each book readers will find discussion questions and the NIV version of the featured story. These books are entertaining and would make an excellent jumping off point for talking about Bible stories. Kids may need an adult to clarify what parts of the stories are actually from the Bible and which aren’t. Rating: 3 —AMG ( )